Feminist News

Female Soldier from U.S. Raped in Bosnia

Officials announced Tuesday that an American woman soldier was raped early Saturday morning in the area of a Czech battalion in northern Bosnia. The investigation was focusing on Czech soldiers with the NATO-led peace mission. The soldier was evacuated Sunday to the Taszar Air Base in Hungary for treatment. U.S. Army Europe spokeswoman Capt. Leela J. Dawson-Hamm said the soldier was being provided with medical care and legal counsel. Stars and Stripes reported the soldier was in good condition and was being attended to by a full-time rape counselor.

Dawson-Hamm said the U.S. Army will now put greater emphasis on training soldiers about traveling in groups, using the buddy system and being aware of possible dangers. Currently, all American soldiers reportedly receive sexual harassment prevention training as part of their annual training. "The soldiers can be confident that incidents of this nature will be fully investigated and violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," Dawson-Hamm said.

Neither Dawson-Hamm nor Stars and Stripes had details on the circumstances of the rape. Czech officials have jurisdiction over the investigation which is being conducted together with American officials.